


The Whiskey, The Liar, The Thief

by Silverstream16



Category: TWICE (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/F, Happy Ending, SOFT GAYS, Sad gays, Too much angst is bad for the heart, and a lil angsty, gays, its gay, not too much angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-18
Updated: 2018-08-18
Packaged: 2019-06-29 01:55:48
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 12,214
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15719547
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Silverstream16/pseuds/Silverstream16
Summary: Im Nayeon was not a Princess. Yoo Jeongyeon would change that.AU loosely based of the song The Whiskey, The Liar, The Thief by Patent Pending





	The Whiskey, The Liar, The Thief

**Author's Note:**

> I haven't proof read this so if there are any mistakes... ooops

“Try to keep up No Jam!”

Yoo Jeongyeon huffed in frustration at the use of her god awful nickname. She picked up her pace despite her burning lungs, the bag of coins hanging tightly from her grasp clanking loudly. In front of her was her short haired and equally short cohort Son Chaeyoung, laughing wildly. Chaeyoung had two bags full of coins grasped tightly in her hands as she raced through the streets, dodging carts and people alike. Behind her, Jeongyeon heard the fading screams from the lousy dockworker they had just stolen from. She smirked knowing the man had no chance of catching up to them. Still, she picked up her pace knowing that their headquarters was still a ways away. She managed to take larger strides to catch up to her tiny partner.

“Who you calling No Jam, No Jam?”

Chaeyoung scoffed and smacked Jeongyeon with one of the heavy bags of coins, it knocked the wind out of Jeongyeon and she stopped momentarily to catch her breath. They were out of the bustling town now, closing in on the edge of the forest where their home was. Chaeyoung stopped as well and walked back towards her taller friend. Jeongyeon cursed Chaeyoung’s stamina, the girl was exponentially faster than Jeongyeon herself and had even run longer than she had and yet the girl’s breathing was steady as could be. Meanwhile Jeongyeon was bent over heaving and wheezing out of breath and she shot a glare at the tiny girl who started laughing. 

“Jesus your stamina sucks Jeong. You’d think that after doing this since our childhood you’d get faster and your lungs would get stronger but nope you still suck.”

“Fuck off Chaeng. Let’s go before we get caught.”

They retreated back to their tiny rundown home in the forest. This shabby shack had been what the two called home for the last 10 years, how they managed to last this long without being caught neither were sure of. At the age of 10 Jeongyeon lost both of her parents in a nasty fight. They were poor from the start and her parents cracked a deal with a shady dock dweller and when they couldn’t hold up their end, the dock dweller sent his men to finish them off. This left 10 year old Jeongyeon hiding under her parent’s bed as she listened to the brutal murder take place. Rather than waiting for the police to arrive and take her away to send her off to some orphanage, she took off with what little belongings she had. She ended up on the outskirts of town and wandered through the forest where she found the small shack. That’s when Jeongyeon met Chaeyoung. The girl, who was a year younger than her, had been hiding in there for days now as her own parents had abandoned her in the forest and took off. The two hit it off immediately and had been best friends in crime ever since. Jeongyeon knew that the police would be looking for her, so she chopped both her and Chaeyoung’s hair off and bleached hers blonde so she would be more difficult to recognize. 

They managed to become expert thieves in the ten years that they’ve been on their own, and truth be told they could have anything they want, yet they still live in the rundown shack. It was small, one open room with a small bathroom attached. They didn’t have many belongings, just a dresser with clothes, a small fridge which only worked after Jeongyeon stole a generator, and a queen mattress with a few blankets that they slept on. The bathroom didn’t work, and had it not been for their mutual friend Kim Dahyun, they wouldn’t have a place to shower. They met Dahyun a few years back when they were still rookie thieves. They were attempting to steal from the girl who was just at the marketplace buying some produce for her family. The girl quickly noticed the two and their intentions but rather than alerting an adult, she handed them a few coins and smiled. Ever since the three would hang out on the weekends, sometimes at Dahyun’s when her parents were out working. Her mother worked at the local medical clinic as a nurse and her father was a fisherman on the docks. They would go over to shower whenever they got the opportunity as being clean helped them blend into the town better. If people saw two dirty girls walking down the street they’d attract more attention and it would be harder for them to steal as people would be more cautious of them. 

More recently, the three girls took to hanging out at a bar located towards the opposite end of the town near Im Estates. It was the richer section of town and the bar was basically the cutoff between the rich and poor side of town. It didn’t attract many visitors as the common people were often too busy making a living to go to a bar and the rich people would rather drop dead than be seen at a dingy bar with common folk. Dahyun showed them the bar a little over a year ago, according to her it was where most of the “town thieves”, as she liked to call them, hung out.   
They met a few mutuals there on their trips, sometimes finding heist partners. Dahyun found the place through her school friend Minatozaki Sana, a refugee from Japan who had to flee during the war. Sana and her family were upper class citizens in Japan, but they lost everything and now lived among the common folk in the small beachside town in South Korea. Jeongyeon liked Sana, she was funny and she never treated her or Chaeyoung with disrespect. She made Dahyun happy too and Chaeyoung and Jeongyeon had a bet on whether or not they would admit their feelings for each other. 

Another bar dweller they met was Chou Tzuyu, the only rich girl who hung out at the bar, unbeknownst to her parents of course. Tzuyu was from a rich family who ran a crabbing business. She moved with her family from Taiwan a few years ago when her parents struck a deal with the Ims and merged their businesses together. The girl was young, a few months younger than Chaeyoung, and she was quite shy as well. She always kept to herself when she was there, which wasn’t very often. Jeongyeon was timid at first, it was unsettling with a goody two shoes in a bar with thieves and she was sure that the cops would bust through the door any minute. But after months of the girl just sitting by her lonesome and cradling a drink in her hands, Jeongyeon realized that she was just there to escape life. Eventually she approached Tzuyu and they became fast friends. Jeongyeon learned that the girl hated her rich lifestyle, and would rather live in the village than in her upscale mansion. Naturally, Jeongyeon thought she was insane, but Tzuyu was sweet and kind and never told a soul about them and their lifestyle. 

They met Hirai Momo shortly after Tzuyu, she was also a refugee from Japan. Her and Sana had known each other for quite a long time, and while they were separated during the war, they somehow both ended up in the same tiny coastal town. Needless to say, the minute Momo walked into the bar one night, Sana and her had a quite loud and tearful reunion. Unlike Sana, Momo was never from a wealthy family, she was from an average middle class family and just happened to go to the same private school as Sana. She managed to attract the attention of the dance teacher from the school and ended up getting a “scholarship”, it was really just that the teacher wanted Momo’s dance skills on his team and begged the headmaster to give her a free ride. Momo lost her parents in the turmoil of the war and fled on her own. Much like Jeongyeon and Chaeyoung, she lived on the streets for a while and would often help them in their heists, even living with them for a short period of time. But eventually Sana found out the truth about Momo, who had been lying about what happened after her and Sana were separated. Sana was furious and begged her parents to take Momo in, which they eventually agreed to. Jeongyeon was happy for Momo, but couldn’t help but feel a bit envious of the girl. 

Lastly, in their endeavors at the bar, they met Park Jihyo. She was the daughter of the bar’s owner and would often be working weekend shifts. Jeongyeon liked Jihyo the most; the girl was incredibly kind and was always looking out for her and Chaeyoung, giving them free drinks and food whenever she could. They became quick friends and the two were there for the bar owner’s daughter when her father was murdered. Like Jeongyeon’s parents, he got caught up in shady deals and ended up paying the price for it. Jihyo took over the bar, refusing to let it shut down as it was her father’s most prized possession. Jeongyeon only ever asked about Jihyo’s mother once, and vowed never to do it again as Jihyo immediately turned cold and vicious and refused to speak of the woman. She would be lying if she said she wasn’t curious about the woman and why Jihyo reacted so terribly to the mention of her, but she wouldn’t press the matter any further than she already had.

The bar had become like a second home to the two thieves, the dwellers were like their family. They fit together like unconventional puzzle pieces and the best nights were the nights were it was just the seven of them alone sharing stories and laughs and passing around beers. Tonight was one of those nights, until two cloaked figures burst through the door and the commotion turned into dead silence. That night would mark the change of all seven of their lives forever, all thanks to the two cloaked figures that unwittingly stumbled into the dingy little bar in the middle of town.

 

~

Im Nayeon was not a princess. Never call her a princess. Despite being raised like one, and coddled like one her entire life, she was not a princess and she would never stand for anyone calling her one. One time she snapped at a servant and he called her a spoiled princess under his breath. Needless to say that man hasn’t set foot in the estate since. Truth be told, Nayeon hated her life. She wouldn’t admit that however, people would just call her ridiculous. She had everything she could ever want. Born into the wealthiest family in the town, Nayeon was treated like royalty all her life. Her father was the owner of the shipping business, and after merging with the Chou’s crabbing business, the family became even wealthier. Her father was not a good man, not only running the shipping business, but also running a crime business. The only reason the Chou’s merged with them was because he tricked them into getting involved in crime and now he was blackmailing them. He started his “on the side” business in crime, as he liked to call it, after Nayeon’s mother had disappeared shortly after her birth. He was sure it was one of the neighboring town’s criminal empire that took her. He still believes that to this day, even after her mother reappeared two years later. 

She hated her father with a passion. He treated her like a princess, gave her everything she ever asked for, but he never loved her. She spent her life locked away in the estate, never allowed beyond the gates. She had no contact with the outside world, the connection she had was the window in her bedroom that allowed her to see the entire town. She longed to be down in the town, living a simple life, now more than ever. Sure being rich had its perks and all but she was lonely, and she just found out that her father had promised her away as a bride to a wealthy aristocrat's son from Seoul. The thought made her skin crawl and her stomach lurch. She didn’t want this, she never wanted any of this, she wanted to run away. That’s why she found herself on the ledge of her window, staring down at the bright and bustling town one evening, longing to be down there.

“Lady Nayeon?”

She was brought out of her silent reverie by the sweet and quiet voice from behind her. She turned her head to see her personal maid, Myoui Mina. Mina was her best friend, the only person she ever had that cared about her. She loved Mina like a sister, they lent on each other for everything. They had been together for nearly a decade now, ever since Nayeon’s father brought the quivering nine year old to Nayeon’s room when she was just ten herself. She didn’t like Mina at first, the girl was quiet, she hardly ever spoke and she was a god awful maid. Nayeon continuously complained to her father that she wanted another maid, but her father refused saying that Mina was a special gift just for her. Nayeon gags at the thought now, how could she ever act so rotten and spoiled? How could her father act like Mina was an object for Nayeon to use? Eventually the girl opened up to Nayeon and the two became fast friends, and when Nayeon found out Mina’s real backstory when they she was 15 and Mina was 14, she was furious.

Myoui Mina was born into the wealthiest family in Japan, unlike Nayeon she was actual royalty. During the start of the war with North Korea, when Mina was just eight years old, she was kidnapped by the North Korean military. Japan was outraged at the kidnapping of the Myoui’s heir. Unbeknownst to Mina, it was her kidnapping that caused the war to explode. For close to 12 years now the war has been waging, and the end is not in sight. Unlike its northern counterpart, South Korea was no menace, they joined forces with Japan, taking in refugees while China joined the North’s side. Despite being enemies in war, Mina was sold through the slave trade to Nayeon’s father, who had suspicious connections to the North. Mina was then forced to become Nayeon’s maid. The night Mina told her, Nayeon was outraged. She had heard about the missing heiress and had always secretly hoped that the girl would return so the war could end, and yet the missing heiress had been under nose the entire time, serving her as if she was some sort of royalty. Ever since Nayeon had refused to let Mina act as a maid unless they were around her father or mother. Much to Mina’s surprise, Nayeon had actually taken to acting like a maid to Mina at times, to this she expressed her displeasure and Nayeon eventually stopped. The two’s friendship had grown stronger than ever as the years passed and they were inseparable, always glued together. Where Nayeon went, Mina went and visa versa. Unfortunately, that meant they were both confined to the estate. Mina was forbidden from ever leaving the walls as Nayeon’s father didn’t want to risk her being recognized amongst the common folk. Regardless, the two had been planning a way out for a long time now, more than ever after Nayeon figured out about her arranged marriage. 

“Mina, I told you to stop calling me that, we’re alone.”

“Sorry, sorry it’s just habit.”

She sighed and turned back to the window staring at the bright lights from the dock on the far side of town.

“Minari.. I want to leave.”

“I know Nayeonnie, so do I.”

Mina joined her on the ledge and rested her head against the older girl’s shoulder. 

“One night at least, one night is all I want.”

“But where would we go Unnie?”

Her eyes scanned the town below, resting on a dingy old building where she could see light streaming through the windows. It was an old bar that hardly anyone ever went to. She overheard some of the servants talking about how they went there one night and it was basically empty, only a few common folk who kept to themselves. Nayeon thought it was the perfect place to go. She grabbed Mina’d hand and guided her finger to point at the building.

“That building right there. It’s a dingy old bar no one ever goes to.”

Mina looked confused.

“Why there?”

“No one is ever there, and they all keep to themselves according to some of the servants I heard talking about it. It’s perfect for us. I’ve never left the estate since I was born, the media doesn’t know what I look like, and it’s been years since… you won’t be recognizable Minari. We could go get a few drinks and just let loose. We can sneak out through the cellar door and come back before anyone notices. I’ve never attempted to leave before, Father won’t expect me to start trying now.”

Mina was silent for a few moments before she shrugged.

“Sure, what else have we got to lose.”

The two got up and plotted their escape. Night was falling soon as the sun had nearly disappeared under the water’s edge. They planned to sneak through to the cellar after the serving staff was dismissed for the night at midnight. They would return before the early serving staff started their day at four in the morning. As the clock ticked closer to midnight, Nayeon changed out of her expensive nightgown, courtesy of her wretched father, and slipped into one of Mina’s day dresses that all the maids wore. The dress was uncomfortably tight and itchy and Nayeon felt terrible that Mina had to wear these but Mina just shrugged. 

As midnight approached the girl’s slipped out of Nayeon’s room and made their way to the cellar without being noticed. Nayeon was excited, this is the first time she’d set foot outside of the gates in her entire life. They decided they had a better chance of going unseen by cutting through the garden in the backyard and exiting into the forest and then following the forest along to the town’s edge. They were successfully able to hop the gate and managed their way into the dark forest. Nayeon’s heart was beating fast in her chest as she gripped Mina’s hand in the darkness. They travelled quickly through the woods and reached the edge of town within a few minutes. Just to be careful, they pulled the cloaks they wore over their heads incase someone were to miraculously recognize them. They stepped into the street and made their way towards the bar, brushing past people who paid them no mind in their simple maid outfits. They fit in perfectly with the townsfolk and Nayeon was exhilarated. This was the life she wanted to live, being free to roam around where she pleased and going unnoticed by the everyone around her.   
They approached the outside of the bar and from the window they could see only a few people inside. There were a total of seven people inside, and their laughter was sonorous. It made Nayeon yearn for a group of friends like that. She took Mina’s hand and pushed the door open, the rusty bell ringing as they entered. Seven pairs of eyes turned their way and her heart stopped. The two girls planted their feet on the ground, cloaks hiding their wide eyes. They scanned the faces and Nayeon’s eyes landed on one in particular, it was Chou Tzuyu. Her heart stopped, the Chou’s had been in their estate many times before, Nayeon had sat next to Tzuyu at the dinner table on multiple occasions. They never talked past a simple hello, and Nayeon hoped and prayed Tzuyu wouldn’t recognize her. She was brought out of her thoughts when one of the women cleared her throat and stood from her seat, going behind the bar.

“Can I help you?” 

Nayeon’s eyes peeled away from Tzuyu, whose face was expressionless as her cloak hid her identity. She dragged her eyes to the short brunette behind the counter staring at her expectantly. 

Nayeon looked at Mina who was looking at Tzuyu under her hood, alarm written on her features. She reached up to remove her cloak’s hood when Mina reached out and stopped her. Nayeon understood what Mina was trying to say with her actions, what if she recognizes you and tells someone? What Chou Tzuyu was doing here was a mystery to her, Nayeon knew Tzuyu’s parents would never allow her to hang out in a place like this. She hoped that if Tzuyu recognized her, she’d keep her mouth shut. After all, Why would Tzuyu risk her own ass to rat out Nayeon and Mina for doing the same thing as her? She shook off Mina’s hand and pulled her cloak hood off, Mina reluctantly following. 

Nayeon scanned the room again, no one’s facial expressions changed, no one recognized her, except Tzuyu. The girl’s eyes widened quickly, but they turned expressionless just as quickly. She took the opportunity to take in everyone’s features. In the seat closest to her was a girl with long raven hair, she didn’t look like a native Korean. Next to her was an unusually pale girl with light auburn, nearly orange, hair. To the girl’s left was a girl with long blonde hair situated in two neat buns on the top of her head, she also seemed like a foreigner. Next to that girl was a tall girl with short blonde hair, Nayeon thought she was beautiful beyond compare. To her left was the shortest of the bunch, she had short dark hair and her eyes were trained on Tzuyu, who was to her left. The girl seemed to have noticed Tzuyu’s momentary shock and she seemed suspicious.

“Do you know them Tzu?”

Everyone’s eyes turned to Tzuyu, who was still staring at Nayeon. Nayeon’s heart leapt into her throat and she felt Mina stiffen beside her. Tzuyu cleared her throat and turned to look at the short girl with an unreadable expression.

“No, I’ve never seen them before.”

Nayeon wanted to let out an audible sigh of relief, silently thanking whatever god convinced Tzuyu to keep her secret. She decided it was time to speak up rather than just stand there awkwardly and cleared her throat. Her and Mina had gone over fake names to go by earlier when they had planned their escape. 

“Well my name is Kim Yongsun, and this is my friend Ahn Hyejin. We’re tourists from Seoul, just passing through here.”

The group just nodded their heads with disinterest, all except for Tzuyu and the tall short haired blonde, who was staring at Nayeon with unreadable eyes. Nayeon was positive that the girl had no idea who she was, how could anyone know other than Tzuyu. There were no pictures of her outside of the estate, hardly any of the staff was allowed outside of the property, and she wasn’t even sure if anyone knew that her father had a daughter in the first place. The short girl behind the bar just nodded her head.

“Okay, now can I help you or are you just going to stand in front of the door all night?”

It was now Nayeon realized that her and Mina didn’t bring any money with them, Nayeon never was given any money as she had nothing to use it on and Mina’s hourly wage wasn’t nearly enough to treat both of them, not like Mina had much of a use for her money anyways. Nayeon blushed slightly and shuffled her feet.

“Uh no thank you, we’re poor folks we don’t have any money on us.”

“But you’re tourists? How did you get here then if you’re poor?”

Nayeon cursed herself for not thinking her lie through enough and panicked and looked at Mina helplessly. Mina however looked calm and collected, having lied for a long time about her true self. 

“We’re here with our families, but we wanted to get away for a little bit and we don’t happen to have any money on our persons.”

The bartender just nodded simply and got back up and went to move from behind the bar to join her friends again before the tall blond stopped her. 

“Wait Jihyo, I’ll pay for their drinks, they look like they could use some.”

Nayeon’s eyes widened at the girl’s gesture and she shook her head to say no. She was too used to people giving her everything they wanted, and as tempting as a drink sounded, she wasn’t going to take a stranger’s money.   
“No that’s quite alright, thank you though.”

The girl just shook her head and handed the bartender, Jihyo, a few coins anyways. The girl gestured for them to go over towards the bar and they reluctantly obeyed. They slowly made their way across the bar as the girls seated at the table resumed their conversation, subtly glancing over once in a while at the newcomers. They approached the bar and Nayeon was fully able to take in the kind stranger next to her. She was gorgeous, she had gorgeous brown eyes and a kind smile that made the corners of her eyes crease slightly. Nayeon hadn’t seen many people in her twenty years of life, but she was sure that this would be the most beautiful woman she would ever see. She blushed slightly under Jeongyeon’s gaze and diverted her attention to Jihyo.

“What can I get you?”

“The strongest whiskey you have.”

“Ah a whiskey girl, I like it.”

The tall blonde was sure a sweet talker and Nayeon’s blush deepend. Truth be told, she had never actually had whiskey before, but she wanted to seem experienced. Mina just ordered a rum and the girl paid for their drinks and pulled two more chairs over to their table. Nayeon was sat directly next to Tzuyu and Mina was on her left. They thanked the girl for their drinks to which the girl just smiled. 

“My name is Jeongyeon, Yoo Jeongyeon.”

Jeongyeon was a pretty name, Nayeon thought, and it suited the blonde girl well. They went in a line from the first girl at the end who’s name was Sana, then to Dahyun, and then Momo, then Jeongyeon and Chaeyoung, and finally Tzuyu who introduced herself as if she didn’t know the two new faces. Sana and Momo had heavy Japanese accents and Nayeon could tell it visibly freaked Mina out, the younger girl hoping and praying she looked different enough than when she was eight and went missing. Sana kept glancing towards Mina, and it was unsettling to both of them. Eventually after all the greetings took place and Mina and Nayeon told them a bit about themselves (all lies of course), they all started their own individual conversations. Momo, Sana, and Dahyun were idly chatting about the day’s events in the town. Jeongyeon and Jihyo were teasing Chaeyoung about her height, and that left Tzuyu to be looking at them quizzically. She got up and made her way to the restroom, silently motioning for Nayeon to follow. She turned to look at Mina questioningly and Mina just shot her a smile, silently telling her she’d be okay on her own. The others didn’t pay too much attention to the two girls who left the table.

Nayeon entered the small bathroom to see Tzuyu standing quite defensively with her arms crossed. With all their encounters, Nayeon suspected that Tzuyu never liked her that much, and she wasn’t quite sure why. 

“Why are you here?”

“Why are you here?” 

The two stood in silence not answering each other for a good few seconds before Tzuyu reluctantly answered her.

“Sometimes I just need to get away.”

Nayeon visibly relaxed at the girl’s honest answer.

“Me too.”

Tzuyu scoffed at her answer and rolled her eyes, much to Nayeon’s annoyance.

“What could you possibly need to get away from? Your life is perfect.”

Nayeon felt her blood boil.

“My life is perfect? You were the only person that recognized me in there because your the only person who has ever seen me before. I doubt those girls even know I exist! My father has never once let me leave the estate lines. This is the first time in my entire life that I’ve left my house.”

Tzuyu’s eyes visibly widened. Her impressions of Nayeon were that she was just some spoiled bratty girl who got anything and everything she wanted. Now she realized that Nayeon was practically a prisoner, confined to the walls of her home for eternity. She relaxed her stance and let her arms drop.

“I won’t say a word if you won’t.”

Nayeon let out a relieved sigh and stuck her hand out, Tzuyu shook it in a silent deal. The two retreated back to their seats just a few moments later. It didn’t seem like anyone noticed and when they returned Mina had joined a conversation with Chaeyoung about idle things about her life. Nayeon listened in as Mina told Chaeyoung countless lies about her life and as Chaeyoung told her about her own life and how she lived on the streets with Jeongyeon. The aforementioned girl was staring intently at Nayeon as Nayeon picked up her untouched whiskey glass to take a sip. She tried to hide the disgust on her face as she swallowed the harsh liquid. She heard Jeongyeon snicker quietly at her reaction and glared at her. 

“Never had whiskey before have you?”

“What gave it away?”

Nayeon rolled her eyes in a sarcastic manner and took another reluctant sip of the drink. The liquid was incredibly bitter and it burned her throat but in some weird way, Nayeon liked it. 

“So you’re from Seoul? What’s it like there?”

Nayeon panicked a little, she knew virtually nothing about Seoul other than the things her father told her about from his business trips. 

“It’s like any other city really, just big and busy.”

“I wish I could go to Seoul, I’ve lived here my whole life. Do you travel a lot?”

“No not really, we don’t get many opportunities to travel.”

Jeongyeon nodded her head thoughtfully and sipped her beer. The conversations continued to shift but Nayeon noticed how often Sana kept staring at Mina, who was deep in conversation with Chaeyoung. She envied how Mina was able to play it so cool and come up with all these stories. She hated to admit that she was envious of Mina’s previous life, and she felt awful about thinking that since Mina had gone through so much. Tzuyu had immersed herself into conversation with Dahyun about her family business and speaking loud enough every time she mentioned the connection to Nayeon’s father and it irked her. She knew Tzuyu wanted her to hear the conversation. Jeongyeon had turned to Momo and Nayeon could just make out the tellings of her day’s events. Nayeon swore she heard Jeongyeon make a comment about stolen loot and her eyes widened. Are these people thieves? She really hoped they weren’t, she wanted to hang out with common folk, not criminals. She’d been around criminals all her life. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Jihyo behind the bar, staring at her curiously. Nayeon pretended not to notice and continued to take small sips of the whiskey. Eventually Jihyo’s stare became too much and Nayeon turned to look at her quizzically. Jihyo immediately averted her gaze but Nayeon didn’t want to back down, she walked towards the counter.

“Why were you staring?”

Jihyo’s eyes narrowed in a rude manner.

“You just look like someone I know.”

Nayeon’s heart hammered in her chest; there was no way this woman had ever seen her before so Nayeon was sure that the girl didn’t know who she was. Nayeon looked like a mix between her mother and father, but she didn’t think she looked enough like either one to be recognized as an Im.

“It’s probably just my imagination anyways, sorry for staring.”

Jihyo genuinely sounded sorry and it made Nayeon feel bad. She just shook her head and took a seat at a barstool as Jihyo wiped the counter down.

“So what’s the story behind you and this bar?”

“It was my father’s, he ran it up until a few months ago when he died. It was his prized possession so I couldn’t let it close down.”

“I’m sorry to hear about that Jihyo. What about your mother?”

Jihyo stiffened immediately, she stopped wiping the counter and stared straight at Nayeon. It freaked the girl out to say the least, one minute she was kind and light hearted and now she looks as cold as ice.

“Dead.”

“I’m sorry to hear that…”

Jihyo grunted in response and continued wiping the counter down, Nayeon gulped and picked her drink up. She gave Jihyo a short smile before returning to the table with the others. They chatted idly about life and whatnot for the better half of an hour, Nayeon slowly sipping her drink and starting to feel a it fuzzy from the strong alcohol. Momo turned to her and Mina with an interested expression.

“So how long are you here for?”

Nayeon hadn’t thought this one through, she genuinely enjoyed spending time with these people, she didn’t think about the consequence of their lie. If they were just tourists staying for a weekend they’d never be able to set foot in the bar again, at least not for a very long time or the others would get suspicious. Tzuyu glanced at them with knowing looks, interested in how they would respond.

“We’ll be here until the end of the month. Our families have some business to attend to with the Ims, we weren’t completely honest when we said we were just here as tourists.”

Mina effortlessly lied through her teeth, a smile on her lips. Nayeon was stunned, but admittedly excited that they’d have a few more chances to see each other again. Tzuyu seemed impressed with the maid’s answer, but her facial expressions wouldn’t show that to the others.  
“So you’ll be able to come back here again next weekend then?”

It was Jeongyeon who asked she was looking directly at Nayeon, and her heart leapt at the thought that Jeongyeon wanted to see her again. She blushed slightly and sipped her drink as Mina hesitantly nodded.

“We might, if we can get away from our parents for while.”

There were a few cheers and Nayeon noticed Chaeyoung’s toothy grin as she stared at Mina with heart eyes. Nayeon snorted into her glass at the small girl’s obviousness, Mina however, didn’t seem to notice. Jeongyeon was watching her again, her gaze burning into Nayeon and causing her heart to race. She took a quick glance at the clock behind the counter, it was nearing three, and the trek back to the estate would take close to twenty minutes. They would have to leave soon just to be careful. She slammed down the rest of her drink and winced hard, still not used to the bitterness burning her throat. She went to return the glass to Jihyo and she noticed Jeongyeon saunter up next to her. She leaned against the counter and Nayeon eyes her expectantly. Jeongyeon just smirked and took a swig from her beer mug. She narrowed her eyes a little, the corners creasing adorably and it made Nayeon’s heart swoon. The taller girl suddenly leaned in closer to her and spoke lowly.

“There’s something about you Yongsun that intrigues me. I think there’s more to your story than you let on and I want to find out what it is.”

The girl’s tone was flirty and playful but it still made Nayeon’s heart lurch, but she managed a challenging smirk. She wasn’t sure if it was the sheer excitement of the night, or if it was the cheap whiskey that still lingered in the back of her throat. She leaned in closer to the girl.

“Have fun trying Yoo.” 

The girl pulled back and took another swig, laughing shortly. Nayeon smiled, her front teeth on full display.

“I’m sure it’ll be fun Princess.”

Nayeon was not a princess. No one should ever call her one. But tonight, in the bar with these strangers, Nayeon just smiled at the nickname. She was playing a dangerous game and she knew it, but she didn’t care in this moment. Someone cleared their throat from behind her and she turned to see Mina, wide eyed as always. 

“We should get going before our parents wake up.”

Nayeon frowned noticeably but reluctantly agreed. They said their goodbyes to the group, Nayeon chortling when Chaeyoung wrapped her arms around Mina excitedly. She raised an eyebrow when Mina hugged back just as tight. She would be sure to ask Mina about that later. There was a tap on her shoulder and she turned to see Jeongyeon. 

“It was a pleasure meeting you Kim Yongsun. See you next weekend?”

“We’ll see about that Yoo Jeongyeon.”

“I’m sure we will Princess.”

~

The night’s events played on in Jeongyeon’s thoughts as she stared at the ceiling hours later. Chaeyoung was snoring next to her, dripping drool onto the mattress. The two newcomers were intriguing to say the least, but something felt off about them. After they left, the girls didn’t think much of it. Jihyo expressed how Yongsun looked like someone she knew, and Sana claimed that Hyejin seemed vaguely familiar to her, like she had seen her before somewhere and Momo agreed. If the two were from Seoul, a city hours away from the small beachside town, and had never been there in their lives, then how was it that they seemed familiar to three of them. Jeongyeon tried not to think too much about it, she was sure the girl’s were just being paranoid of the newcomers. But that Kim Yongsun, she was dancing through Jeongyeon’s alcohol induced mind and it was only a little bothersome to the thief, only because it kept her awake. The girl was a mystery and Jeongyeon was determined to figure her out, she was hiding something and she could sense it. What it was, she had no clue, but she was determined to get it out of her eventually. Slowly but surely, the girl started to nod off, the mysterious girl still fresh on her mind.

~

The nine girls met at the bar again the the next two weekends, slowly forming stronger friendships. Even Tzuyu was starting to become nicer to the girls, becoming more relaxed in their presence. Over this time Nayeon and Jeongyeon danced around each other like moths around a flame. There was electricity in every interaction they had, slowly becoming more and more flirtatious. Jeongyeon was starting to become hooked on the girl, she had failed to get any new information out of her and trying to was like an addiction. She had never felt this type of attraction to anyone before and it scared her slightly. It scared her because she knew the girl would eventually leave and they’d probably never see each other again. It was the third time they had all met up when Jeongyeon had asked Nayeon if she wanted to meet alone before the girl had to go back to Seoul. Nayeon reluctantly agreed to meet Jeongyeon the next weekend. That’s how they ended up here, on the far end of the town where the forest met the beach’s edge. It was a long walk for Nayeon, as her home was on the other side of the town, but with Mina’s help she was able to sneak out at their usual time and the two quickly hugged before Mina went off to the bar and Nayeon continued off towards the beach. 

As she approached the shore, she saw the familiar figure of Jeongyeon standing at the water’s edge, staring off into the distance. Her footsteps became louder, and Jeongyeon turned as she came within ear shot. The girl had a bundle of flowers in her hand, she had picked them specially for Nayeon on her way there. When Nayeon was within reach she pushed her hand out.

“For you.”

Nayeon blushed slightly and took the bundle of flowers, smelling them delicately. The scent would forever be ingrained in her memory, it would forever remind her of Jeongyeon. 

“Thanks for actually showing up Princess.”

There it was again, the nickname Nayeon despised. Never in a million years did she think she’d ever enjoy being called a princess, not until Yoo Jeongyeon came along anyways. She smiled a wide toothy smile and walked towards the sea, sitting down on the bank. Jeongyeon joined her and the two sat in silence for a moment. Nayeon hesitantly shuffled closer and rested her head on the blonde’s shoulder.

“I’m going to miss you.”

“I’m going to miss you too.”

Jeongyeon was going to miss her too, it made her heart hurt. She knew the truth, that she’d be confined to the estate once again, until her father sent her off to Seoul with her husband to be. Jeongyeon didn’t know that until then, Nayeon would be just a short ways away, not across the country. 

“We should do something special before you go.”

“Like what?”

“What’s something you’ve always wanted to do?”

A lot more than you know Yoo Jeongyeon. She thought idly about all the things she’s never had the pleasure of trying before. She glanced out at the calming waves and it hit her.

“I’ve never been swimming.”

“I’m sorry you’ve never what? How have you never been swimming?”

If only you knew. 

“I’ve just never had the chance to.”

Jeongyeon stood up, reaching her hand out for Nayeon to take. 

“Let’s go swimming.”

“I don’t know how.”

“I’ll teach you.”

“We don’t have the proper attire for it.”

“We can just swim in our underwear.”

The thought of Jeongyeon in her underwear made Nayeon blush. The thought of Jeongyeon seeing her in her underwear made her blush harder. But she nodded anyways and stood. Jeongyeon was the first to strip, quite shamelessly at that. She was left in a simple bra and underwear and she waited for Nayeon to do the same. A blush rose to her cheeks as she undid the buttons holding her dress in place, she looked away from the blonde as she let the dress pool to the ground, leaving her exposed in her underwear. She met Jeongyeon’s eyes, and couldn’t decipher the emotion behind them. It was dark, but the moonlight was bright enough for Nayeon to see the blush spread across the girl’s cheeks. She took Jeongyeon’s hand and the two walked towards the ocean. It was freezing and Nayeon had to suppress a yelp at the icy water. Jeongyeon however jumped straight in without any hesitation.

“You’re nuts! It’s freezing!”

Jeongyeon laughed and stood in the shallow water before lurching forward and dragging Nayeon in. The girl yelped loudly this time as the strength of Jeongyeon’s grip sent her hurdling forward and the other girl stumbled backwards. A wave was approaching quickly as this occurred and Nayeon fell forward onto the taller girl as the wave hit, both of them crashing backwards into the water. One minute she was above the icy water and now she was under. She was choking on the water, and her eyes stung as she opened them. Suddenly she was pulled above the water and she choked loudly as Jeongyeon helped her.

“God are you okay?”

They weren’t very far in, and when standing the water reached halfway above Nayeon’s knees. She was cold, her lungs hurt, and her eyes stung from the salt but she was laughing. Jeongyeon started laughing with her and it was the most fun she had ever had in her life. After assuring the girl that she was okay Jeongyeon taught her the basics of swimming. They swam out to where the water was above their wastes, and crouched down so that they were nearly fully submerged. Their bodies had started to adjust to the temperature of the water, but Nayeon was still shivering. Jeongyeon was holding onto her hand, as precaution in case Nayeon was swept away or started to drown somehow in the not so deep water. 

“This is the most fun I’ve ever had.”

“Am I really that entertaining Yongsun?”

Nayeon winced at her fake name, wishing she could tell the other girl the truth.

“Yes. You’re very entertaining Jeongyeon.”

The girl smiled in response and the two just stared at each other in the moonlight. The silence was comforting and the soft waves made everything more exhilarating. Jeongyeon started to lean forward, and Nayeon found herself doing the same. The blonde’s hand was no wrapped around Nayeon’s waist, their faces inches apart. She was shaking, but she could feel Jeongyeon’s hot breath on her lips and her gaze flickered between Jeongyeon’s chocolate eyes and her pink lips. The world was silent around them, the water seemed to cease it’s motion as Nayeon lurched forward and connected their lips. The sensation was incredible; Nayeon had never felt so alive. Electricity was flooding through her veins as the girl’s lips locked onto hers like two puzzle pieces. Jeongyeon wrapped her other arm around Nayeon’s waist and pulled her in closer, Nayeon reaching her pruned hand up to cup the blonde’s cheek and deepen the kiss. This was better than anything Nayeon could have ever dreamed of, she longed for years for something to make her feel alive. She never expected that something to be a thief named Yoo Jeongyeon. 

As for Jeongyeon, she had never in all her years of thrilling heists, ever felt anything as exciting as this. This girl sent her mind into the gutter every time she was around her. Their lips fit perfectly together, and Jeongyeon was sure she would never find another like this. It was as if sparks were erupting from between them, and this was something Jeongyeon was sure she’d always remember. She would always feel the faint trace of those sweet lips on hers. It was intense and passionate, and better than any sort of prize she had ever stolen. 

The intensity was building quicker and harder until the strong sense of reality came flooding in in the form of a particularly large wave. It came crashing over the two of them and that caused them to immediately separate. They were sucked under, still clinging to each other and refusing to let go. They surfaced a few moments later, choking on water and breathing heavily. The choking died off and was then replaced by laughter shortly after. Nayeon cupped Jeongyeon’s face while laughing and placed a chaste kiss to the other’s lips. 

“We should probably get out before we drown.”  
Nodding in agreement, Jeongyeon took the girl’s hand and the two made their way back to the shore. They didn’t have any sort of towel on them, and the cold night air hitting their wet skin made them shiver. They reluctantly got redressed, knowing their clothes would eventually dry off. Jeongyeon suggested they head back to the bar, but Nayeon didn’t want to go just yet.

“Can we stay a little longer?”

“Okay, if that’s what you want.”

Nayeon laid down on the soft sand and Jeongyeon followed suit, the two laying in silence for a little until Nayeon curled into Jeongyeon’s side. 

“I don’t want to leave you.”

“I don’t want you to leave.”

“I can’t stay.”

“I know.”

It was a thick silence, filled with unspoken words from both parties. 

Run away with me. 

They wouldn’t know it, but both of them were thinking it. They didn’t want to leave each other, they didn’t want to have to move on. They stayed there for just a while longer, taking in the last moments they’d ever spend together alone. Jeongyeon got up first, reaching out a hand for Nayeon who took it and was instantly pulled up into an embrace. She held tightly to Jeongyeon, arms holding the warmth of the blonde’s body close to hers. Jeongyeon pulled back and leaned in to kiss her again, their lips connecting with the same electricity they had felt earlier. Reluctantly they pulled away and made their way back to the bar, Nayeon wearing her cloak just in case, and Jeongyeon keeping an eye out for any police officers. It was unconventional, but they worked. Both of them had something to hide, both hiding their identity from the world, both of them hiding their lives from the world. Maybe it wasn’t as unconventional as it seemed.

They arrived to the bar with no problems, the girls all cooing at them teasingly. They rolled their eyes and joined in the conversation quickly. All of their hearts were heavy knowing this was the last time all nine of them would be together. Chaeyoung was glued to Mina’s side, it was clear to all of them that a romance had bloomed between the two, similar to Nayeon and Jeongyeon. They all toasted on last time, it was bittersweet, and even Tzuyu seemed somber about the situation. As time ran out, they all hugged. It started with individual hugs. The two girls made their rounds, hugging the other seven tightly. It ended in a group hug, there were tears from some of them, mostly Nayeon and Jihyo. They had grown so close to each other over the last few weeks, and they weren’t prepared to go back to being seven again. As Mina and Nayeon made their way to the door, Jeongyeon and Chaeyoung followed. Nayeon watched as Mina wiped the shortest girl’s tears with a watery smile.

“I don’t want you to leave me..”

“I’ll always be with you Chaengie..”

Her heart broke as she watched them lock lips, tears streaming down both of their faces. She turned to Jeongyeon, who was trying to hold her emotions in. Nayeon placed a hand on her cheek and leaned in for a kiss. It was soft and tender, it was filled with remorse and heartbreak, but it was still electric, and it made her body tingle. She pulled back and saw Jeongyeon with teary eyes.

Run away with me

They both wanted to say it, but neither did. Jeongyeon wiped away Nayeon’s tears and leaned in for one last kiss and whispered against her lips.

“I love you.”

“I love you too.”

And she meant it, they both meant it. They grew to love each other over such a short period of time, and they never wanted it to end but it had to, and it was the hardest thing either of them had ever had to do in their lives. It hurt so badly, it burned her lungs and shattered her heart, but she didn’t regret a single second of the time they spent together. Without Jeongyeon, Nayeon would never have learned how to live. Yoo Jeongyeon showed her how to breathe, she showed her how to laugh and love, she showed her what love was, and she showed her how to live. 

They needed to go, she knew they needed to go now if they didn’t want to get caught, but she just couldn’t. Mina, who was sobbing to herself, had to drag her out the door and Nayeon was sure her heart was completely shattered as she watched the door close and the seven people she had grown to love so much disappear from her life completely. 

The two made their way back to the estate, rather quickly as to get back before they got caught. They held each other tightly as they walked, sobbing silently. Both girls had experienced their first and only true loves, and they knew they never would get to feel that again. 

They approached the cellar door and quietly opened it, and to their horror they ran face to face with one of the staff members. His eyes widened quickly and he grabbed both of them and dragged them into the house before yelling to alert another staff member. It all happened so quickly, and Mina and Nayeon were separated in the commotion. Nayeon’s parents were woken up rather quickly and both were furious at what had happened. They locked Nayeon away in her bedroom, refusing to tell her where Mina was. She sobbed and screamed, banging on the door, but no one answered her, no one would ever answer her.

It took a few days for Nayeon to be informed that Mina had admitted to forcing Nyeon to leave the property with her. Mina lied to spare Nayeon from any punishment, and Nayeon wanted to scream. She’s the one who convinced Mina to go with her, not the other way around. But sweet and timid Mina, her best friend in the entire world, is taking the fall so Nayeon won’t have to endure anymore pain. Nayeon would never forgive herself. She knew Mina would never see daylight again, she knew Mina was locked away in the horrid place her father called ‘the dungeon’ and it made Nayeon sick. She banged on the door and pleaded for hours for someone to let her out, that Mina was lying, that it was all her fault and to let Mina go. But nothing ever came, no one ever answered, no one would ever answer her.

~

It had been a little over two months since Jeongyeon had last seen the love of her life. Everyday was difficult, never getting easier for her, and she knew Chaeyoung faired the same. The two still pulled off heists, but it was never the same. They didn’t burn with the same desire or the same fervor as before. Chaeyoung was noticeably slower now, her stamina had worsened. Jeongyeon’s heart hurt to think about the pain Chaeyoung was feeling, she knew the exact feeling. 

The two still met up with the others every weekend at the bar, none of them the same either. They were grim for a long time, but slowly things started to get better and the others started to feel better. Tzuyu had been coming by a lot less, claiming she didn’t want her parents to end up catching her. Jeongyeon noticed the change in her demeanor, the usually calm and collected girl was jumpy now. Something was wrong, she could clearly tell, but Tzuyu wouldn’t budge. Tzuyu never budged. 

The weekend was nearing, and Chaeyoung and her had just returned from another heist. The loot was good and it would surely be enough for them to live off of for the next few weeks. She stared at the ceiling that night, Chaeyoung wide awake doing the same next to her. She hoped that wherever Hyejin and Yongsun were, that they were happy.

~

Nayeon had been confined to her room for nearly two months now, her windows were barred and she had absolutely nowhere to go. She hadn’t heard about Mina since the day she was told that Mina confessed. Nayeon spent hours every day formulating plans to escape, plans to take Mina and escape. She knew if she ever had the chance, she wouldn’t think twice. She would grab her friend and run and never look back. 

After weeks of formulating a plan, Nayeon finally thought she had one that could work. It was nearing the weekend, and this weekend is when her parents would meeting with the Chou family. These meetings usually took place once every three months. This meant that both of her parents would be out of the estate which meant that the multitude of her father’s “employees” (read as mobsters) would be joining them. There was always one stationed outside of her room, per her father’s request. He never opened the door once even when she begged and pleaded, but she was sure she had a way to get him to open the door. She knew her parents would leave by nine pm and be back by eleven, that gave her plenty of time to get Mina and go. She knew from seeing the dungeon that there was always one guard on duty, and the keys were kept on his belt. She would disarm him and get the keys before grabbing Mina and escaping. 

The time wound down and it was just past nine. She watched her parents leave the estate through her barred windows and knew it was go time once she couldn’t see them anymore. She grabbed the piece of glass from her mirror that she had broken a week ago. She felt queasy at the thought of using it, but she was her father’s daughter after all and she knew how to play dirty. She held it loosely in her hand and moved towards the door. To the side of the door was her dresser, and on her dresser was a glass vase. She took a deep breath, pressed herself against the wall and slid the vase off the dresser. It shattered loudly and she let out a long scream. She heard startled feet moving to her door and the sound of locks being opened. She held her breath as her door flew open, the man rushed into the room and Nayeon sprang into action, coming out from behind him and driving the glass into his shoulder, he let out a scream and whipped around but Nayeon had already grabbed the heavy book on her dresser and swung it as hard as she could. The man fell to the ground unconscious and Nayeon took the knife he had off of him. She rushed out of the room and locked the door behind her.

Her heart was racing and she was having trouble breathing, it was now or never. If she failed she would never get another opportunity, she couldn’t fail. She crept quickly but silently through the estate until she reached the stairwell leading to the basement where Mina was being held. She crept silently down the stairs and peeked her head around the corner. The guard was sitting in a chair, facing away from her tossing a ball in the air. There was a crowbar resting on the wall behind the man’s chair, and Nayeon silently thanked whatever god decided to place it there that night. She crept forward as silently as possible, she reached out to grab the crowbar but in her effort to pick it up, she scraped the wall with it. The guard whipped around immediately and she froze. Nayeon panicked, he rushed towards her and it’s at that moment she remembered the knife. She whipped it out and yelped as she drove it through the man’s forehead. Blood spattered on her hands and face and she was shaking. The man dropped to the floor, and Nayeon wasted no time grabbing the keys. 

“Nayeon?”

“Mina!”

Nayeon rushed towards the sound of the voice and was met with an unpretty sight. Mina was chained on the ground in one of the cells. She looked deathly thin, like she hadn’t been fed in days, and her skin was as pale as snow. Her eyes were dull and it hurt Nayeon’s hear to see her like this. She quickly fiddled with the keys until one of them opened the door. She rushed forward and again had to try out all the keys until the chains loosened and Mina was free. She was incredibly weak and Nayeon had to help her up.

“You came for me.”

Her voice was weak, and Nayeon knew she was near death, thanking god she saved her now rather than waiting.

“I always will Mina.”

She ran out dragging Mina behind her, but Mina was too weak. Each second they wasted widened the opportunity of them being found. They were quickly slowing down, Nayeon had to do something and fast. She pulled Mina’s arms over her shoulders and told her to jump. Mina jumped weakly and Nayeon caught her legs. Mina wrapped her arms weakly around Nayeon’s neck as the girl picked up her speed and ran as quietly as she could with another person on her back. 

She didn’t want to go to the front door obviously, she also didn’t want to risk the cellar door. She remembered long ago, when her mother returned from god knows where, that her parents were arguing about a secret passage through the library. It wasn’t one of the bookcases that was secretly a door no, one of the chairs in the room was covering a door that would lead them out the side of the house towards the ocean. She raced into the library, which was empty as no one ever goes into the library. She put Mina down gently and began moving chairs around, at this point she could hear yelling from outside the door and panicked footsteps racing around the estate. She had to work fast if they were going to make it. Eventually she found it, and she sighed in relief. She yanked the door open and grabbed Mina, who had fallen unconscious. She made her way down the ladder as best she could with a girl in her arms. When she set foot on the ground she held Mina bridal style and raced towards the end of the tunnel. Bursting through the door she cried out in relief, it had been so long since she’s tasted fresh air. 

She didn’t idle long and raced back towards the woods with Mina dangling in her arms. She followed the edge of the woods until she came up on the town, she pulled her cloak to cover her face, but she still received a lot of looks. She didn’t care though, she had one destination in mind and she needed to get there quick. Once her father found out about her escape the town would be thoroughly searched. There was one place she knew she could go, one place she knew she could get help and escape for good. She was going to the bar. This meant that she would have to come clean to the seven people she grew to care so deeply about, but it was life or death now and she prayed they would understand. 

She was wheezing when she threw the door to the bar open, meeting the same confused expressions she had when her and Mina first appeared in the doorway months ago. She let out a strangled sob, her emotions getting the best of her.

“Help…”

She collapsed to her knees as the seven others ran towards her, her head was spinning, her arms were numb and her lungs were burning. Mina was picked up out of her grasp and brought to the biggest table in the bar. The others flocked towards Mina to help but one person was there next to her.

It was Jeongyeon, it was always Jeongyeon, it was always going to be Jeongyeon.

“What are you doing here? What is going on?”

Jeongyeon’s face was confused and panicked, and hurt. She knew Nayeon had lied now, she knew it was all a lie now. 

“We lied.”

It was all that came out of her mouth as Jeongyeon picked her up and brought her to the others. She clung to the girl for dear life, she had missed her with all her heart. 

“We don’t have a lot of time, they’ll be coming for us.”

It was quiet but Jeongyeon heard. 

“Who will come? What is going on?”

She mustered as much strength as she could and cleared her throat.

“I need to tell you all the truth.”

They all momentarily looked at her as she thought of how to tell them as quickly as possible.

“We aren’t tourists. My name isn’t Kim Yongsun, and her’s isn’t Ahn Hyejin. My name is Nayeon.. Im Nayeon.”

The room stilled, all but Chaeyoung who was doting over Mina, placing a cool compress over her head, but Nayeon could tell her was shocked by her facial expression.

“Im.. as in the Im Estates Im?”

Jeongyeon’s voice was low, and filled with disbelief. Nayeon couldn’t bear to look at her as she nodded.

“We don’t have a lot of time. We have to leave… Or I have to leave with her. I have never been allowed to set foot outside of my house, and so we broke out one night and came here and that’s when we met you. But the last time we left we got caught. I was thrown into my room and she was thrown into the dungeon. It’s been two months since…”

The room was silent, Mina was starting to rouse slowly and Sana and Chaeyoung were coaxing her awake. Momo and Dahyun were watching from the side with wide eyes while Tzuyu looked around guiltily.

“You knew didn’t you Tzuyu?”

Jeongyeon sounded impossibly hurt by all of this, and Nayeon couldn’t blame her. But they didn’t have time for this, they were running out of time before they would be found. 

“I can’t even begin to explain how sorry we feel about lying to you, our stories might not have been true but everything we felt was real. It always was real. I have to go, and I have to take her with me, I don’t expect you to want to join me but… Her and I have to leave now.”

“Who is she?”

It was Chaeyoung, her eye’s were red and her voice was filled with hurt. Nayeon prepared herself for another shocking blow to deliver.

“Her name is Mina, Myoui Mina. Yes, yes THE Myoui Mina. I don’t have time to explain the full story. After she was kidnapped she was sold into the slave trade my father bought her and made her my maid. I’ve known for a while now and she’s my best friend and I can’t live without her.”

The room went completely silent again, the silence lasting a bit longer this time until Tzuyu spoke.

“Okay that I did not know.”

It would’ve been comical had they not been in such an intense situation. The group startled as Sana shot up excitedly.  
“I knew it! I knew I recognized her. Those moles are distinguishable anywhere!”

The room went silent again, everyone had unreadable expressions as they dwelled over what to do. Nayeon caught Jihyo’s eyes, the girl was crying and staring at Nayeon with so many emotions hidden behind her eyes. She slowly approached her and Nayeon was terrified that the girl was going to yell at her or hit her. But the girl hugged her tightly and broke down. Everyone was bewildered at the scene, Nayeon included. She hugged Jihyo back and if she hadn’t been so close to the other girl she wouldn’t have heard her whisper.

“It’s you.”

Now Nayeon was really confused, and she wasted no time.

“What’s me?”

Jihyo pulled back and wiped her eyes.

 

“It’s you. I knew you looked like someone I knew. Nayeon… you’re my half sister.”  
If the group thought the night couldn’t get any more shocking, they were wrong.

“Your mother disappeared shortly after you were born yes? She was with my father, they had fallen in love since before she met your father. She never wanted to be married to him but she had no choice. After she had you, she ran away to the town where she lived with my father for two years. I was born in that time frame and she eventually left to return to your father and you, leaving my father heartbroken. I resented her and you for so long, but now… I know you.”

Nayeon couldn’t believe it, there was just no way Jihyo was telling the truth. SHe was crazy, she had to have the wrong person in mind. But she quickly reached into her pocket and pulled out a picture. It was of a man and a woman holding a baby and smiling happily. Nayeon’s eyebrows shot up in disbelief, it wasn’t just any woman, it was her mother. 

“That’s us, my father and mother and I. It’s her isn’t it?”

Nayeon was in utter disbelief. She nodded slightly and looked at Jihyo. This girl in front of her was her sister, she had a sister. She couldn’t dwell for long as Dahyun;s panicked voice interrupted their thoughts. 

“This is a great family reunion and all but if we’re going to leave we need to go NOW!”

Looking out the window, the group saw cops swarming the town. They needed to go now if they were ever going to escape. Nayeon was panicking, she couldn’t make it alone with just her and Mina. She turned and saw the others hurrying to get Mina ready to leave. Jihyo was barking out orders and Momo and Dahyun were picking up Mina to carry her.

“We’re going with you.”

It was Jeongyeon, her first and only love. She turned and saw the blonde staring at her determined. She could see the hurt in her eyes, but she could also see the love. Jeongyeon stepped forward and grabbed her hand as the others prepared for the long escape.

“I meant what I said earlier, the feelings were real. The feelings are real. I love you Yoo Jeongyeon.”

Jeongyeon was silent for a moment but she pulled her in for a kiss just seconds later. Nayeon wanted to cry, she never thought she’d get to feel the other girl’s lips again. Her body shivered as the same electrical spark she had felt that beautiful night rushed through her again. They pulled away reluctantly and got themselves ready to flee. 

They all held onto each other, forming a group around Momo and Dahyun who were carrying Mina. They counted down and burst through the door, entering the bustling town. There were cops everywhere, townsfolk were screaming, and the crowd was huge. They held each other tight as they raced through the crowd, never breaking formation. They didn’t break formation until the screams from the town faded from earshot and the only sound was the crunching of the forest floor below them. They ran for what seemed like hours, only slowing down once when Sana tripped and fell. 

They were deep in the forest now, and the chances of them being found now were slim. They travelled a little farther, until the sun started to rise. Finally coming upon an entrance to a small cave. They decided it was best to rest before continuing on. They all silently agreed to let Jihyo formulate a plan for them, as they all sat to rest inside the cold cave. Mina had woken up and was currently making amends with Chaeyoung who was crying and muttering how she didn’t care she was just happy they were together again. Sana and Dahyun were passed out already, curled into each other in the corner of the small cave. Momo was with Jihyo, going over a plan for them. Apparently Momo had connections to a group of people in America. She said the woman, Kim Sowon, and a group of her friends had run into Momo when she first fled Japan. They took her in for a while until she set off again. They managed to miraculously reconnect when Sowon and her friends reappeared in America. They had been in touch for months now, formulating a way to get Momo to America. 

With a plan in place, and the group ensured safety for now, they all went to sleep. Jeongyeon had offered to stay up and watch for any cops, although she doubted they would arrive this deep in the forest anytime soon. Nayeon joined her minutes later. They sat outside of the cave in silence for a few moments, until Nayeon broke the silence.

“I’m sorry that I lied to you.”

“I know you are. I understand why you did, and I forgive you.”

“You know… I wanted to ask you to run away with me so many times.”

Jeongyeon laughed and turned to Nayeon with wide eyes.

“Really? So did I..”

Nayeon smiled wide. Maybe things would be okay, she had a new family now. Mina was alive and recovering, she just found out she had a sister, who she already cared greatly for before she knew of their relation. She had amazing friends in Sana, Dahyun, Chaeyoung, Tzuyu, and Momo to accompany her on their journey to freedom. Most importantly, she had Yoo Jeongyeon, the only person she could ever imagine loving. The very same person who taught her how to love and how to live.

“I guess we really do work well don’t we?”

“Yes we do Princess, yes we do.”

Im Nayeon was not a princess. But suddenly she didn’t mind the idea of being Yoo Jeongyeon’s princess. She didn’t mind it at all.

**Author's Note:**

> Eat fruit kids, it's good for your health


End file.
